Applying geoscience to Australia's most important challenges

Quantifying social vulnerability: a methodology for identifying those at risk to natural hazards

Citation

Geoscience Australia provides most of its products for free under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International Licence.
We only require that you reference the use of our data or information using the following citation:

Abstract

Australia is exposed to a wide range of natural hazards, including earthquake, cyclone,
landslide, flood, storm surge, severe wind, bushfire, coastal erosion, hail storm and
drought. How each person will fare in the event of a natural hazard is influenced not just
by exposure to infrastructure, but also by personal attributes, community support, access
to resources and governmental management. This network of factors affecting
social vulnerability to natural hazards, combined with the complex linkages found in
cities and the behaviour of the hazard itself, all contribute to the development of a risk
assessment.